Thanks:A very large thanks goes to those of you who have taken the time to review my story. I'd also like to thank my wonderful friends and family for making each and every story come alive.

-Chapter 2: Just here to the left of you-

Nothing shocks me in this world. I remember, as a young child, I used to put the same jigsaw puzzle together time and time again. It was a very large puzzle that when assembled correctly showed an image of a knight in shining armor rescuing a damsel in distress. I'd spend all night putting it together, moving the familiar pieces into their complimentary groups. Afterwards I would stare at the finished product for hours. There was something so wonderful about the heroic knight. I wanted to be him. I wanted to save everyone I loved from harm. When I was at that young age, I wanted to fight off dragons and monsters with a mighty sword and be loved and adored by my friends. Nowadays, I fight off the worst monster of all. I fight the AIDS virus to save my friends, who, in return, show little to no appreciation. Had I known the price for glory when I was so young and naïve, would I have taken the same road? Most likely.

Why do any of us choose the courses of life we take? At one time or another, every last one of us takes a final look back to what might have been. When Alexi Darling tried to reel me into her sleazy world of sell-out showbiz, I could have taken the job. As I sit here, I am wasting valuable time in my life. These precious minutes I'll never gain back. Sometimes I hate my camera. I look at it as a person, representing everyone and everything that has jaded me. I've spent half of my life capturing bits and pieces of memories in it, hoping to one day support myself with the quality of my films. But I know, somehow I know so well, that it will never happen.

"No other course. No other way. No day but today."

How our little Mimi can preach those powerful words I'll never know. Her life has never been an easy one. To be honest, I really didn't like her at first. With all of the emotional turmoil Roger was in that fateful Christmas, the last thing I believed any of us needed was a heroine-addicted exotic dancer making everything even more complicated. Watching the effect she had on Roger made me almost jealous. He openly invited her into his twisted world and showed her a side of him he never showed anyone. Not even me. After all of the years I had spent keeping him alive, he wouldn't give me more than an irritated grumble when I tried to strike up a conversation with him. Then in walks this adorable brunette into our apartment and his life. It was as if I never existed. It took me an entire year to get over my hostility towards her. It took her being on her deathbed for me to really read between the lines.

"I have always loved you. You can see it in my eyes." Roger's voice sang gruffly as he chocked on his tears. To see Mimi die, to watch the pain in Roger's eyes as he witnessed the love of his life passing on, was almost too much to bear. That's when the realization came to me. Mimi was the best thing to have ever happened to Roger. She was not about to willingly leave him alone and heartbroken in this world, like April did. She wasn't choosing to die at that moment. During that past year, something had changed within Roger. Mimi had made the old Roger come out. I hardly believed that personality of Roger even existed after April's death. As angered as I was to have not been the person to bring the real Roger Davis out, I began feeling an immense gratitude towards Mimi. Thank God she survived that bitter night. It was that bright eyed little girl that changed everything . From that Christmas on, things changed between Mimi and I.

I recall one evening after she and Roger had a particularly gruesome fight (again with the habits). As always, Roger was the one to trudge out of the loft, slamming the door behind him. I was sitting on a stool in the kitchen, reading over a script I was trying out , when I saw Mimi fall onto the couch in sobs. Generally, I was not one to involve myself on their relationship woes. But on that particular occasion, I felt the inner urge to console her. She looked so shocked yet so relieved to see me sit down next to her on our tattered couch. She wiped her eyes quickly and sniffed as she began to speak.

"You think I'm a fool, don't you?" she asked. I couldn't help but notice the bitter tone of her voice blended with the random sniffling as she fought back her tears.

"Why would I ever think that?" I was apprehensive as to where the conversation was heading. She seemed to be able to read into people all too well. Those crystal eyes stared into my soul and immediately I was an open book.

"Mark, you're the only one who sees the truth in all of us. You know. You've always known. You knew the second I came into Roger's life that it could never be."

Having no real reply to her straightforward statement, I sat quietly and nodded. The air supply in the room seemed to have turned completely off. I found myself struggling to breathe as a weighted silence fell over us both. In what could only have been minutes but seemed like centuries, Mimi spoke up once more.

"You love him." she said. What power each word she spoke had.

"I do." I mumbled. There was nothing I wanted more than to escape that very moment. Finally, someone was actually connecting with me, and it scared me more than anything I had ever experienced before. I looked at her, hoping to find a little solace in those eyes that Roger held so dearly in his heart. In a New York minute, her gaze met mine. So much more was said in that silence then all words ever spoken. Her lips curved into an comforting smile and she placed a small hand on top of mine.

"He loves you too, you know. I know it's hard for him to express his feelings, but I want you to know he loves you very much." she said. Her tiny cold fingers entwined with mine. Without knowing it, I had consumed an entire year of my life loathing the one person that cared enough to understand me.

Roger opened the door before I had a chance to thank her for simple yet caring words. He stared intensely at the ground as he muttered a quick apology. Although there was still a red hot surge of anger coursing through her body from Roger, Mimi was quick to forgive and forget. She wiped away the last few tears as she pulled Roger into a tight embrace. I looked to them both, wondering how their problems could have been solved in such a small amount of time. Weren't they still infuriated with one another? Roger began walking with Mimi back towards their bedroom when Mimi looked back to me.

"No day but today." she mouthed.

No one has ever understood me quite like Mimi. It came as such a surprise at first, feeling such a deep bond with someone I had hated. Now that I think about it, it's not so absurd. Everyone's always known there was something incredibly special about Mimi, I was just lucky enough to have had a first hand experience of that something. It doesn't shock me. Nothing really shocks me in this world.